


Told-You-So's

by Wallwalker



Series: Our Haven [5]
Category: Compilation of Final Fantasy VII, Final Fantasy VII, Final Fantasy VII: Advent Children
Genre: Canon Disabled Character, F/M, Fluff, Post-Game, Sunburn
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2012-12-06
Updated: 2012-12-06
Packaged: 2017-11-20 10:26:08
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,126
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/584373
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Wallwalker/pseuds/Wallwalker
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Barret falls prey to one of the hazards of beach vacations.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Told-You-So's

**Author's Note:**

> This one's post-game, and in the same continuity as AC. I figure, hey, Cloud still has that villa. Maybe they all go on vacation there once in a while. You have to have a break sometimes.

"I told you! Didn't I tell you?"

Yes. Yes, Barret thought, she damn well had told him. He was just gettin' a little tired of hearin' about it, considerin' how much he was hurting right now.

 _I don't need no damn sunblock, Tifa,_ he'd said, when she'd held up the bottle for him and offered to rub it onto his back if he couldn't reach. Even the coy smile hadn't changed his mind. _I ain't never gotten burned in th' sun before and it ain't gonna start now_. If he could reach back through time and bitchslap himself in the face for believin' that stuff, he thought that he just might do it.

It was just... he'd been in the sun before. Hell, he'd been to the beach before, and it was never that bad. Sure, he didn't do a lot of sunbathin', and he'd never fallen asleep on the beach before without a shirt on, but he'd lasted a hell of a lot longer in the sun than a lot of the people back in Corel Town, so he'd figured he just didn't have to worry about that stuff. So yeah, he'd helped Tifa put on her sunblock after she'd put on her one-piece, because he wasn't gonna say no to _that,_ but when she'd taken the tube back and told him it was his turn, he'd shook his head now. Her horror stories about sunburn and peelin' skin hadn't deterred him. He'd figured he'd be fine.

Tifa hadn't stopped reminding him of that since he'd woken up with his back feelin' like it had been roasted over a bonfire, and it was startin' to get tiresome, mostly because she was right. But there wasn't much point in gripin' about it - again, mostly because she was right - so he finally just went and took a cool shower - as best he could, because even the cold water felt like hell on his back. Then he went to his room in the manor, changed into some shorts, and laid down on his stomach, doin' his best to ignore the pain.

He wasn't sure how long he'd tried to rest before Tifa came back; he'd heard the door open and shut a couple of times, but he wasn't sure which door it had been. But he woke up completely when he heard someone open the door to his room and quietly slip inside. "Barret?"

"Hey," he said, groggy and still not feeling too hot. "I'm - ugh - feelin' better now."

"No, you're not," she answered, but her voice was gentler than it had been before. "I've gotten burnt before. I know how it feels."

"Hmph. Yeah, I shoulda listened to you," he finally admitted, although he stopped short of sayin' he was sorry. What'd he have to apologize to her for, anyway? He was the one who was in pain. But maybe if he said it first, she wouldn't have to say it anymore. You could love somebody so much the world revolved around 'em, but it didn't make hearin' _I told you so_ any more fun. "So what do you do 'bout it?"

"There are lotions that can help. I just picked some up from the shop - Cloud said he was going to take the kids for ice cream, so they'll be out for a while longer." He felt her sit down on the bed beside him. "I'll put it on for you, if you want."

Well, he wasn't gonna say no to that again. "Yeah. Sounds good."

"All right. I'll try to be careful." He heard her fiddling with some sort of tube, and rubbing her hands together. "This might be uncomfortable at first, but it'll help."

The first touch stung to all hell, and he couldn't help but wince. "Damn!" he muttered under his breath. "Be careful!"

"I'm being as careful as I can," she said. "Just give it a minute..."

There wasn't much he could do, besides just stay still and cringe a little at the weird, goopy feel of the stuff and the way it burned every time she touched anywhere new. Most of the time he liked her back rubs, but this one just hurt... although he slowly started to realize that it was beginning to hurt less and less. "What's in that stuff?" he eventually asked, when the painful burning sensation started to die down. "It's... workin'."

"Some kind of desert plant gel, and a painkilling medication. It's supposed to moisturize burnt skin." She kept working, her hands moving careful over the muscles of his back, and he was getting close to bein' able to appreciate it again, how she always knew where he needed her to touch him. "It's probably still going to peel, but this should make it easier to handle until then."

"Mm," he said, starting to relax onto the bed a little more. "Guess I might need more of this later."

She laughed a bit. "I wouldn't mind."

She didn't stop, not right away. There was a lot of skin that had gotten burnt - his back, his neck, the back of his legs - and she didn't stop until she'd rubbed the ointment over every little bit of it. Still hurt, at least at first, but by the time she was done he felt cooler and tingly and a little bit more like himself again.

Finally she settled down beside him, lying on her back and resting her head on her crossed arms. "That's better, right?" she asked.

"Yeah." He turned to look at her; she'd already changed into her pajamas, the silky ones he'd got for her, and she looked pretty tired. "I'm guessin' you're settlin' in for a nap, huh?" Chasin' Marlene over the beach was probably pretty damn tiring, he figured. She hadn't been half as quiet as little Denzel; the poor kid had stayed huddled up under the umbrella, despite Cloud and Marlene and their best efforts to get him to play.

She nodded. "I was hoping you'd join me. Sleep will help you heal."

"As long as you give me more of that stuff when I wake up," he said, reaching over - the motion didn't hurt near as bad as it had, although it still felt like his back was bein' scrunched up like a wad of newspaper - and putting his good hand on her arm. He liked to hold her hand when they were sleepin'. Made him feel less like he was driftin' around lost.

"That was the plan." She yawned and nuzzled his hand tiredly. "See you in a few hours."

"Yeah. See ya."

Next time she wanted to rub any kinda lotion on his body, he decided as he closed his eyes, he was damn well gonna let her do it.


End file.
